The invention relates to an arrangement for securing a belt retractor on the body part of a motor vehicle, whereby the housing of the belt retractor, which is U-shaped and has side shanks and supports therein a belt shaft, comprises a fastening bracket projecting therefrom having an access opening for a securement means operable to secure the belt retractor to the body part of the motor vehicle and an additional mounting plate deployed for the securement of the belt retractor on the body part.
In connection with safety belt retractors, one generally endeavors, for the reasons of achieving material and weight savings and the cost reductions associated therewith, to configure the housing with a lighter weight and with thinner sheet metal thicknesses, whereby the disadvantage associated therewith is that the housing, in the area of its fastening bracket, does not exhibit a sufficient deformation resistance and, in contemplating a threaded securement of the housing, the reduced material thickness is not sufficient for the provision of a threaded fastener receiver which will operate in the capacity of a securement means. Assistance in this regard has been provided by the provision of additional welded nuts provided with threads, whereby this involves an additional manufacturing effort in the manufacturing of the housing. The disadvantage of the reduced deformation resistance force in connection with the fastening bracket comes especially to the fore if the draw-off location of the belt at which the belt is drawn off the belt shaft supported in the U-shaped housing is disposed opposite the fastening bracket, as this is the case, for example, in the area of the back-sided cap repository of belt retractors installed in motor vehicles. In this event, a moment is exerted upon the fastening bracket or, respectively, the securement means, upon the loading of the belt during a blocking action.
An arrangement having the state of the art features is disclosed, for example, in DE 197 52 191 A1. In this arrangement, there is provided, for the reason of facilitating the mounting of the arrangement, a mounting plate which is secured by tack welding before the mounting of the belt retractor to the body part; the mounting plate is provided with hook-shaped projections on which the housing of the belt retractor is to be suspended via engagement of the hook-shaped projections by correspondingly arranged longitudinal holes on the housing and, thereby, is to be maintained in a pre-positioned mounted disposition before subsequent securement onto the body part.
At the least, the mounting of the mounting plate on the body part disadvantageously represents an additional installation effort; moreover, the mounting plate is not in the position to permit a configuration of the housing walls or, respectively, the fastening bracket, to be of a thin material thickness or to permit the provision of a threaded fastener receiver for receipt of a securement nut, because the fastening bracket of the belt retractor lies outside the mounting plate.